Breath by Breath

Practice notes ::: Right now

Right now I am

:::  enjoying that "wrung out" feeling after a strong yoga practice.  Every cell has been squeezed and rehydrated/aerated and all is spongy and full of prana!

:::  basking in the sound of our wind chimes and genuine breeziness on the deck to cool my sweat

:::  amused by the neighborhood crows' social hour

:::  knowing that my raw veggies are marinating for lunch later on

:::  grieving a bit for Mr.  Jobs.  I am not an Apple product user--never got the habit.  I just mark the passing of a truly innovative leader who bravely and privately faced his mortality and did what he loved until the end.

Have a lovely day.

Breathtaking mommy moment ::: inventive spelling

Do you ever look at your child in total amazement when they do something that exhibits abilities that utterly surprise you?  As I'm quietly making dinner this evening, Silas is playing his "coloring game" aka "Paint" on my laptop.  He likes to get a text box up, type random letters and giggle as I pronounce the gibberish that shows up. 

Today he typed "ad" and asked me what it spelled.  I said, "Ad, like advertisement."  I went back to my duties and wandered over a few minutes later to see this on my desktop.  He was quietly sounding out the word and typing his inventive spelling of "advertisement."  I was bowled over.  First, I love that he knows what an advertisement is and is aware that they try to sell him things or ideas (critical thinking 101 is a regular course at our house on the rare occasions when hulu or a football game is on in his presence and a commercial pops up). 

Second, he could sound out a word and spell!  Who knew.  With all our reading and sound making, and "what starts with the sound 'sh', etc.'', I had no idea he'd integrated it into this important skill set at the tender age of 4 and 8 months!  I'm sure this is not startling news to anyone.  He's almost 5 and I'm sure this is on someone's developmental schedule.  But, it was a breathtaking and proud mommy moment for me.

 

TV-free childcare in our "health" clubs

(Actually I'd like to ban the ubiquitous TV's in the workout area of the club, but I'll settle for saving our kids.)

I like my 24 Hour Fitness club.  It is convenient, priced fairly, and it has childcare provided by lovely and well-intentioned young women--a huge benefit to parents!  

But...24 Hour Fitness makes its money by trying to get people to sign up and workout, presumably to increase their health and fitness.  So, why does it have TV monitors in its Kids' Clubs? 

I am starting a campaign to encourage 24 Hour Fitness to align with the American Academy of Pediatrics recommendations on TV viewing for children by banning videos and TV in their Kids' Clubs at all locations.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children under the age of 2 should watch NO television (that also means videos, computer downloaded movies, Netflix, and video games). Furthermore, children over 2 should watch no more than 2 hours per day.

Most of the children in the Kids' Club at my gym are under 2, and those over 2 are getting almost 50% of their weekly maximum if their parent works out 5 days a week.

I don't want to choose between my health and my child's.  Please see this new report just out today...

If you want to do something....

• Join my group on Facebook.  I'll provide updates and ideas as well as progress on our campaign.
  

• If you are a 24 Hour Fitness member:

• Talk with your club manager and let himi/her know how you feel.

• Befriend the childcare workers.  Ask them what the policy is in your club regarding the videos.  Ask them if they are willing to turn off the TV.  You'll get some interesting responses and in some cases the opportunity to share some information.
• I plan to make a post-card sized handout to share with parents I see at the club to encourage them to voice their opinion.  I'll supply it here when it's ready. 

•     Send a letter to:

                          24 Hour Fitness

                         Member Service Dept.

                        PO Box 2689

                        Carlsbad, CA 92018

•     Send a letter to:

                        Carl Liebert III, CEO

                        24 Hour Fitness Worldwide, Inc. 

                        12647 Alcosta Blvd., 5th Floor  

                        San Ramon, CA  94583

• Please let me know if you take any of these actions (or any others), so I can keep a count.  You can e-mail me through this blog or post it on the Facebook group.